Repeating mechanism for phonographs



NW 1%, 111 3323. Ll-YSAW'E E. F. ANDREWS ET AL REPEATING MECHANISM FOR PHONOGRAPHS 2 Sheets-Sheet 1 Filed April 1, 1921 E. F. ANDREWS ET AL REPEATING MECHANISM FOR PHONOGRAPHS New, 6 N23. EATYSWYH Filed April 1, 1921 2 sheets sheet 2 till ll atented Nov. 6, T923. i

UNEE STATES amen PATENT @FHGE.

EDITH F. ANDREWS AND WILLIAM BAYARD STURGIS, OF CHICAGO, ILLINOIS.

REPEATING MECHANISM JFOR; PHONOGRAPHS.

Application filed April 1.

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that we, EDITH F. ANDREWS and WILLIAM 'BAYARD Sruners, citizens of the United States, residing at Chicago, in the county of Cook and State of Illinois, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Repeating Mechanisms for Phonographs, of which the following is a specification.

The present invention relates in general to phonographs, and is more particularly concerned with a novel means for automatically repeating the whole or any part of a recorded selection without necessitating any break or interruption in the flow of sound emitted from the phonograph instrument to which the mechanism of this invention is operatively attached.

The main and primary objects of this invention, broadly stated, are the provision with the phonograph of a duplex tone arm construction, and means associated therewith for controlling the operation of the arms in alternate unbroken sequence, whereby an automatic repetition of a recorded selection may be efi'ected indefinitely.

Another important object of the invention is the incorporation in the mechanism of adjustable means whereby the selections on disc records of varying sizes, or any desired portions of such selections, may be reproduced, thus permitting the employment of this repeating mechanism with any records of the disc type now so extensively used with phonographs.

One valuable application of the present invention is in providing music for dancing purposes wherein it is desired to continue without interruption the same musical selection for a period of time longer than that ordinarily required to play one record.

It is known that there are devices upon the market whereby the recording needle is returned automatically to its starting position, but in the operation or all these devices there is of necessity a very appreciable break in the music during the time required to lift the needle and return it to its starting position. This undesirable break, as previously stated, is eliminated when the present mechanism is employed.

@ther advantages and salient features of the invention will be appreciated as the nature of the same is better understood from the following description and accompany- 1921. Serial N0. 457,619.

ing drawings wherein is set forth what is now considered to be apreferred embodiment of the invention. This embodiment is however chosen primarily for the purpose of exemplification, and, since it is obvious that the same is capable of modification in unessential details, it should not be interpreted as a restriction on the spirit of the invention or as an unnecessary limitation on the scope of the claims.

In the drawings,

Fig. 1 is a top plan assembly View of the invention as attached to a phonograph instrument and operatively associated with a disc record thereof;

Fig. 2 is a vertical partially diagrammatic section through the tone arms and mechanism for automatically raising and lowering the same; and

Fig. 3 is a partially diagrammatic plan view on an enlarged scale, illustrating a portion of the control mechanism.

Referring now in detail to the drawings, and particularly to Fig. 1 thereof, the numeral 10 designates aresonator horn of the type ordinarily employed with phonographs. The smaller upwardly-opening end of this horn has rotatably attached thereto a cover plate 11 in the surface of which two upwardly projecting elbow members 12 and 13 are rotatably mounted for movement in a horizontal plane. Two tone arms 14: and 15 open at their larger ends into the elbows 12 and 13 respectively, being pivotally connected thereto in order to permit movement of the arms in a vertical plane. smaller ends of the arms are provided with The-- the usual reproducers 16 and needles 1? I which co-act with the grooves 18 of a disc record 19. A bracket arm 20 is hinged to the cover plate 11 for movement in a vertical plane, and is provided near its outer end with two upwardly projecting horizontally slotted ears 21.

A transversely disposed adjusting screw 22 passes through the slots in the ears of the bracket arm and engages near its ends with threaded blocks 23 carried in pivotal. mountings 24 on the tone arms 14 and 15. The ends or the screw are oppositely threadcd, and, when the same is rotated by turn ing a small wheel 25 which is secured to the screw between the positioning ears 21, the tone arms are simultaneously moved either towards or away from the br ketarm record 19, one of the arms being held in.

an elevated position with its needle out of engagement with the grooves 13, while the other operatively engages with the grooves on the opposite diametrically disposed portion of the record.

The mechanism for alternately maintaining the tone arms in a. temporarily elevated position will now be descrlbed. Two small rollers 26 and 27 are rotatably journalled on pins 23 and 29 carried on the under sides of the tone arms, and are adapted to ride upon narrow arcuate elevating plates 30 and 31 disposed therebelow. The pins 28 and 29 project laterally from one side of the rollers and engage and trip control stops 32 and 33 which are positioned in their paths. These stops are equally spaced 'on opposite sides of the center line of the machine, as shown, and are'carried by threaded blocks which engage the oppositely threaded ends of an adjusting screw 34 rotatably mounted in the slotted spaced ears of a central transverse member 35. A small wheel 36 is attached to the screw between these ears, and serves to rotate the screw whereby to move the stops toward or away from the center line of the machine.

The tripping of the stop 33' by the pin 29 functions by means hereinafter set forth to lift the arcuate plate 31 and raise the tone arm 15 to a position wherein its needle is out of contact with the record grooves, and, simultaneously therewith, to lower the arcuate plate 30 and the tone arm 14 to a position wherein its needle is in operative cont-act with the grooves. The subsequent tripping of the stop 32 by the pin 28 serves to raise the plate 30 and lower the plate 31 whereby the tone arm 15 again becomes operative and the tone arm 14 inoperative. This cycle may be repeated in this manner indefinitely.

Since it is obvious that many mechanical expedients may be employed to actuate the vertical movement of the arcuate plates 30 and 31 under the control. of the stops 32' and 33, it is not intended to restrict the present invention to any particular means for -accomplishing this purpose. In Figsj2 and 3 is illustrated a preferred way in which the arcuate plates may b operated andcontrolled. The plates are mounted on rectangular uprights 37 and 38 which are vertically movable in guide sleeves 39 and 40 positioned on the machine frame. These uprights extend downwardly and constitute the cores of stationary solenoids 41 and. 42. The lower ends of the cores are provided with circular metal discs 43 and 44 which, when drawn upwardly into contact with the bottoms of the solenoids, limit the upward movement of the arcuate plates. The downward movement of the plates is limited by their contact with the top of the previously mentioned guide sleeves. The energizing of either solenoid functions to raise its core and consequently lift its corresponding arcuate plate and tone arm. Upon breaking the circuit of either solenoid the core thereof of course drops, and the tone arm supported thereby is lowered. In order to prevent jarring oi the tone arm by being lowered too abrupt y the metal discs above mentioned are provided with downwardly extending rods 45 and 46 which have attached thereto at their ends non-conducting apertured fiber discs operating in oil filled dash pots 47 and 48. Flexible contact fingers 49 and 50 are adjustably positioned on the rods 45 and 46, and serve to form a contact with their corresponding dash pots just; before the rods reach their lowermost positions.

From Fig. 3 it will be noted that the previously mentioned central transverse member 35 which carries the stops 32 and 33 is pivotally mounted at 51 to the machine frame. Beyond this pivoting point the member 35 is. offset 'downwardly and then rearwardly into an insulated contact box 52 where leaf springs 53 tend to maintain that portion of the member 35 in a centered position normally out of contact with two oppositely disposed contact points 54 and 55.

Vires 56 and 57 connect these points'with. two small axially aligned solenoids 58 and 59 which are in turn connected by wires 60 with a positive electrical current lead. The rearwardly extending portion of the member 35 is connected with a negative current lead It will be understood from this construction that the movement of the stop 32 by the pin 28 will cause the member 35 to cllose the circuit of the solenoid 58, and t iat the movement of the stop 33 by the pin 29 will close the circuit of the solenoid 59-. These solenoids are provided with a common core, 62. The energizing of one solenoid serves to shift the core toward the same and to shift a switch arm 63 which is connected to the core into position to form a contact between two oppositely disposed contact points 64 and 77 or'between 65 and 76, depending upon which solenoid is energized, whereby a connection is made between wires 66 and 67 or between wire-s 68 and 75,

each of which is connected to one of the four formed and when stop 33 is actuated the connection 66-67 is formed. Since the arm 63 is always positioned to form one and only one of the above connections at one time it will be'understood that the making of tne of these connections automatically breaks the other. The small solenoids 58 and 59 and the switch operated thereby are contained in the box-like structure 69 situated for convenience between the solenoids 41 and 42 as shown in Fig. 2.

Positive current leads 70 and 71 enter tl'e upper ends of the solenoids 41 and 42. The previously mentioned wires 66 and 75 which are adapted to connect with the wires 67 and 68 by means of the switch arm 63, enter the solenoids 42 and 41 respectively at their opposite ends, while the Wires 67 and 68 to which the switch arm 63 alternately connects the wires 66 and 75 respectively, lead to the dash pots 47 and 48 respectively. The negative current lead 72 of the solenoid 41 connects with the metal disc 44 carried at the lower end of the core 38 and is thereby put in communication with the flexible contact finger 50 above the dash pot 48. In a like manner the negative current lead 73 of the solenoid 42 connects with the disc 43 of the core 37 and is put in communication with the contact finger 49 above the dash pct 47.

It will be understood from this arrangement of circuits that upon the tripping of the stop 32- the circuit of the solenoid 42 now closed through the contact of the flexible finger 49 against the dash pot 47 will be broken through thebreaking of the connection between the terminals of the wires '66-67, and the tone arm 15 lowered into an operative position with its needle in the grooves'of the record. The tone arm 14 will not be raised however until the arcuate plate 31 of the tone arm has been lowered sufficiently to form a. contact between the flexible finger 50 and the dash pot 48, since although the terminals of the wires 687 are immediately connected'in the tripping of the stop 32 the circuit of the solenoid is not closed entirely until the contact of the finger 50 with the pot 48 occurs. The tripping of the stop 33 of course serves to lower the tone arm 14 and to raise the tone ,arm immediately before the needle of ginning of the selection which is indicated by the outer end of the adjacent arrow 74. The adjusting wheel is then turned until the needle of the raised tone arm 14' is in vertical alignment with the end of the selection indicated by the inner end of the adjacent arrow 74. In case the instrument when last used was stopped with the arm 15 raised and the arm 14 lowered, it is only necessary to trip with ones'finger the stop 32 in order to place the arm 15-1n the above assumed lowered position. The positions of the stops 32 and 33 are now adjusted by turning the wheel 36 until the stop 32 just contacts with the pin 28. The repeating mechanism is now set, and, upon starting the rotation of the record, the selection will be played. As the needle of the tone arm 15 reaches the end of the selection the stop 33 is tripped and the arm 14 lowered. Just as the needle of this arm in being lowered reaches the grooves of the record at the commencement of the selection, the circuit of the solenoid 42 is closed in the manner previously described, and the arm 15 is thereby raised. This alternate unbroken operation of the tone arms will continue indefinitely until the current to the control mechanism is switched off or the record brought to rest. It will be evident from the mounting of the tone arms and bracket arm 20 that the same may be lifted up- Wardly as a unit about the cover plate 11 in the manner of an ordinary, tone arm, The variance in the vertically pivoting axes of the tone arms and the bracket arm is compensated for by the aforesaid horizontal slots in the bracket arm ears 21 whereby the screw 22 is permitted to move long'i-' tudinally therein upon the raising of the tone arms and bracket arm.

While the means for cooperating with the grooves 18 of the record has been referred to in the preceding description as a needle 17 it will OfuCOllI'SE be understood that any other type of stylus may be employed with equally good results.

W e claim:

1. In a phonograph instrument, two tone arms provided with styli adapted to cooperate with a record of the ii'istrunient. means associated therewith for maintaining the tone arms with their styli alternately inoperative, said means comprising members elevating the tone arms whereby the styii are alternately lifted from their operative engagement with a record, means for said members.

2. In a phonograph instrument, tone arms provided with styii adapted to coto el vate the arm into a position st; a stop rec positioned in proximity to each of said In testimony whereof We have hereunto arms, means carried by each of said arms subscribed our names in the presence of 10 for engaging the stop adjacent thereto, two subscribing witnessesn and means actuated by said engagements EDITH F. ANDREWS.

5 for raising and lowering the arm elevating WM. BAYARD STURGIS.

members whereby When either stop is en- Witnesses: gaged the opposite'memberis lowered and RAYMOND L. (winner,

the adjacent member raised. MARGUERITE SYP. 

